It's a Big World

Since the only English television stations we get here are CNN and BBC, I watch a lot of news shows, and most of them are world news programs to be more specific. Watching these shows has made me realize that I know nothing about what's going on in most countries around the world. While I am pretty good at geography and at least know where the countries are on a map, I can't tell you the president or prime minister's name of any places outside the US.  I don't know which countries are democratic and which are not.  And I certainly can't explain the history of any country except the US...and that's still iffy.

I remember many years ago at an interview, the man on the other side of the table asked the infamous, "So what are your weaknesses or areas you'd like to improve upon, Cara?"  While there's a mighty list of these things, the first one that came to mind was current event knowledge. (I had always been poor in history classes at school since my comprehension skills weren't up to par.) So I decided that day, many years ago, that I would try to do better at understanding current events and major happenings in world history so I wouldn't be the idiot in the room if someone wanted to discuss WWII.

I failed. I tried to watch some news, but quickly became overwhelmed by the names I couldn't pronounce, the cities I couldn't find on a map, and the religious groups I didn't know existed. While I don't expect to catch up on everything, being forced to watch CNN and BBC here in Germany have certainly boosted my current event knowledge and I am not afraid to ask Alfons to explain past events to me, as he's far better versed in history...be it European or anywhere else.

One thing I've learned so far is that I am extraordinarily blessed to have the opportunities I have had in both the USA and in Europe.  Had I been born in a third-world country or one torn apart by war, I could not be where I am today.

Even when your day gets tough, remember your blessings. It may be difficult, but be thankful for everything you have, even a crappy job, a car with no A/C or a leaky faucet, as those things are only a dream for millions of people around the world.

Making Memories with Mom

Before she left, Mom said she wished she had written everything down that we did so she wouldn’t forget anything. Well, here’s our list, Mom. Now everyone will know how much fun we packed into your eight-day visit!!!!

Day 1:

Picked up at Zurich airport in Switzerland

Saw cute little Swiss houses

Visited not one, but two seas with a beautiful view

Drove up the Alps and saw cows wandering

Bought some Alp Butter Cheese 

Heard cow bells that sounded like wind chimes

Ate at a café where Mom had her first Wurstsalat

Drove to Hildrizhausen to see Cara & Alfons’ place

Day 2:

Took train to Stuttgart

Walked down Konigstrasse checking out the shops

Saw the old wooden elevator (out of service unfortunately)

Ate lunch outside at a Paulaner Café and tried more Wurstsalat

Watched a crime show being filmed

Found a beautiful fountain and park downtown

Day 3:

Celebrated Mom’s Birthday in Tubingen!!!

Had lunch at NeckarMuller on the water

Took a wooden boat down the Neckar River

Shopped for Cara’s Birthday gifts (hehehe)

Picked up by Angela for convertible ride

Ate dinner at Krabba Nescht near Black Forest

Day 4:

Picked up curtains from seamstress by the pool

Our neighbor Heike made Kasespeztle for lunch

Returned bottles at grocery store and got fresh bread (Mom’s favorite)

Cleaned house before Alfons’ arrival (typical Thursday)

Started project to recover dining room chairs

Day 5:

Took train into Stuttgart again

Had a ham & cheese croissant for lunch at Kamps

Took a 2 ½-hour city tour of Stuttgart

Tried to see the city from the television tower, but too foggy

Mom ate CurryWurst for the first time and loved it

Stopped at farmer’s market stand in Hildrizhausen

Ate at Schnitzel Academy with Angela & Wolfgang

Day 6:

Delivered recycling stuff and got yelled at by an old man

Went nordic walking in the fields and dodged the goats
Visited a Skoda dealer to look at new cars for Alfons

Shopped at Real (Germany’s version of Wal-Mart)

Saw Wolfgang’s new wood table project at his parents’ home

Visited Angela & Wolfgang’s vegetable field

Bought chocolate at Ritter Sport factory

Prepared a very late meal for their arrival (meats, cheeses, fruits)

Day 7:

Walked up to an old fort with a great view

Stopped in a very old city called Esslingen 

Tested two ice cream parlors for comparison

Cooked on new grill with Angela and Wolfgang

Played CatchPhrase and laughed our heads off

Day 8:

Drove to Irndorf to visit Alfons’ parents

Watched Cara make homemade Spetzle noodles

Walked to a lookout point of the Danube Valley

Stopped by the Lake of Konstanz (aka Bodensee)

Drove back to Zurich, Switzerland

Ate cheese fondue, raclette and cordon bleu at Adler’s for dinner

Walked down the cool streets of Zurich in the rain

Their Football vs. Our Football

Here are a few things I don't like about European football (aka soccer):

1) The clock never stops, even if there's a major injury or a goal is scored.
2) At the end of each half, the ref decides how many extra minutes the game will last based on how much time was wasted by injuries and goals.
3) Even when the additional 1-3 minutes are up, the ref can stop the game whenever he wants. (There are some ways to determine this, but I've seen all the so-called rules be broken by multiple refs.)
4) There are only three refs and two are on the sidelines with little power. They can only raise their flags when they see something wrong, but the main ref (who may not have seen it) has to make the call.
5) There is no instant replay for the refs to watch if there's a disputed action. Whatever the main ref calls is what stands.  (That really sucks when the audience can see the replay and knows the call was bad.)

In fact, there were so many bad calls during this year's World Cup, the FIFA president actually said he would begin discussions about using more technology for the 2014 games.  He did, however, say he would not consider video replays, but instead things such as electronic goal sensors so refs will automatically know whether the ball passes the goal line or not (since a ref mistakenly said England didn't score a goal against Germany when they actually did).  I know he's trying to maintain the tradition of the sport, but when you can reduce human (ref) error for more accurate games at such an important event, it's time to join the new millennium.  (And you're already 10 years behind.)

So now that the World Cup is over - Spain won by the way - it's time to get excited about American football, which is right around the corner!

Alfons' brother-in-law Wolfgang likes sports so a few days ago, I decided to start teaching him the complicated rules of American football in hopes that he'll want to watch a Colts game or two with me. He learned about the four downs, the different ways to score and the main players' roles. I have a small plush football I bought at a one-euro shop a few weeks ago, so he and I pretended to be the offense and defense as he learned.  I even showed him the classic Charleston knee-crossing dance when I made it to the pretend end zone!!!

T-Minus 7 Days!

YIPPEEEEE!!!  My mom is coming to visit one week from today!!! She is the best mom in the whole world, and I miss her like crazy. She calls me each morning on her way to work and she sends me a card every week reminding me how much she loves me and how proud of me she is for taking this exciting leap in life, but unfortunately hugs are not something you can send through the mail.

She'll be here for her birthday next week, so I've got an amazing day planned for us on the 21st! I'm going to try not to pack too much fun all into one day, but I can't wait to show her our little village, the great city of Stuttgart and the beauty that surrounds us. (Good thing she'll be here for 8 days...though that's still not long enough!) 

I'm so lucky that we live between the Neckar Valley vineyards and the Black Forest, which are both such beautiful areas. And there's so much history here. My favorite castle is on a hill we pass each time we visit Alfons' parents. It's older than the USA! Call me a silly, uncultured American, but that's just unbelievable to me.  I think Mom will love it here!

That Girl is High Maintenance

...not anymore.  We don't actually live IN Stuttgart, Germany.  We live about 25 kilometers (15 miles) away from downtown in a great little village with only 3,000 people or so.  We have a small grocery store (that runs out of fruit by mid-day, so go early), a gas station, a bank (that's closed for a 90-minute lunch break each day and doesn't come back from lunch on Wednesdays...fyi), and a couple small shops.

I've lived in or very near big cities all my life and did not think I'd enjoy being this far away from all the action, but it just takes extra planning!  Since everything's closed on Sundays, you have to make sure you have enough to eat one day in advance.  That would have been easy for me when I lived off TV dinners, but now most things in the house are fresh and go bad quickly.  Our tiny fridge can go from full to empty in 2.0 days easy.

And as far as image goes around here...no one cares.  I'm sure there are people who care somewhere (maybe downtown), but the people I've met here don't care what brand your purse is or whether you wear pajamas to go shopping.  In fact, I've started wearing less and less make-up each day.  Unless I have an interview, there's just no need to get all dolled up for the neighbors.  I've come to accept my white eyebrows, lack of eyelashes and abundance of freckles from all the sun I'm soaking in at the pool.  Don't get me wrong!  When I start working, I'm sure I'll put on some mascara, but I will certainly try to keep it to a minimum.

Holiday Weekend

While the Germans don't celebrate Independence Day on July 4th, I still tried to make the best of my holiday weekend. On Saturday, the German soccer team was playing Argentina (the favorite) in the World Cup. We were trying to make it to the top 4 teams!!! Angela and Wolfgang invited me over to watch the game, since Alfons prefers to go bike riding during the games, because the trails are empty and he's not a soccer fan. Angela's friends Nicole and Anya joined us with their flags, facepaint, hand clappers and vuvuzela! (In case you haven't heard about the vuvuzelas, just Google it to read about the controversies those little plastic horns have caused in South Africa during the World Cup this year.)

I wore my new German shirt and stole Nicole's Deutschland hat. Then we all painted little German flags on our faces and cheered for our team. We had a blast and the Germans won 4-0!!!!!!  Woohoo!!!!!

After the amazing game, Wolfgang grilled some brats and frikadellen outside as we all chatted about nothing in particular on the patio. Nicole and Anya speak fairly good English and we've hung out together before, but this time they came prepared with a tiny little pocket translation dictionary. It was hilarious to see them say, "wait a minute...I have to look it up." They didn't want other people to tell them the words they needed, so we'd wait on them to figure it out.  It was fun!

I didn't do much on Sunday except hang out at the house with Alfons. I watched (aka slept through) Shrek and ate the Oreos I had bought a few days earlier to be sure I got a taste of the true American spirit on July 4th!